MJF Underwent Shoulder Surgery, Delaying AEW In-Ring Return
Maxwell Jacob Friedman will not be returning to the ring for AEW any time soon. Longtime SEScoops correspondent Jason Solomon of the Solomonster Sounds Off broke the news that MJF’s physical rehabilitation was not getting him back to 100% and as a result, he underwent surgery to repair his left shoulder.
On Sunday, Friedman appeared at the C2E2 comic expo in Chicago sporting a brace on his elbow and looking nowhere close to lacing up his boots again.
MJF was wrestling through a lot of physical problems toward the end of his World Title run. He was very banged up and needed time off television. In his absence, AEW removed him from their roster page, but he remains under contract.
Back in December MJF spoke with The Solomonster at the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame on Long Island, New York. This was right before his AEW World Title defense against Samoa Joe at AEW World’s End. He detailed the various injuries he was powering through, but this shoulder injury is going to keep him out of the ring longer than originally hoped for.
Injuries greatly affected MJF and Adam Cole’s main event 2023 storyline. Friedman lost the On December 30, 2023, MJF defended his AEW World Title against Samoa Joe at the AEW World's End pay-per-view event at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. MJF dropped his title during that match, and he hasn't wrestled since. He suffered multiple injuries, including a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
Adam Cole, who was revealed as The Devil, had to stop touring with the company. His ankle injury from AEW Grand Slam was not healing as he wanted it to, because the travel was getting in the way of his recovery. The Devil storyline, and the Undisputed Kingdom faction, had to pump the brakes big time after that.
